Almost two months after closing amid the second wave of COVID-19, educational institutions in Telangana will reopen from July 1 by adhering to safety precautions, the state government announced on Saturday, June 19. The decision was taken by the state Cabinet led by Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR), after due examination of the reports submitted by the Medical and Health Department on the COVID-19 situation in Telangana. The Cabinet instructed the Education Department to open all categories of educational institutions in the state from July 1, with students being allowed to physically attend classes.
An official statement from the Chief Minister’s Office on the reopening of educational institutions said, "The Cabinet sought support and cooperation from people for its decision, which was taken not to incur a loss to the livelihoods and for the benefit of public life. However, the Cabinet made it clear that lifting of lockdown should not lead to negligent behaviour, people should wear masks, maintain physical distance and use sanitizers and other self-regulatory methods to curtail the spread of the virus and they should follow the guidelines prepared by the government. The Cabinet also urged people to extend their full cooperation to curtail coronavirus's spread once and for all."
The statement further said, "With the educational institutions instructed to re-open, the Cabinet has instructed the Education Department to prepare instructions and guidelines on compulsory attendance of the students,online classes and other related issues and release the same at the earliest." In March, the state government had announced the closure of educational institutions amid the high number of COVID-19 cases in the second wave. In April, it was further announced that summer holidays would be extended until June 20 in view of the COVID-19 situation.
On Saturday, the state government also decided to lift the lockdown restrictions in Telangana from Sunday, June 20. As per reports submitted by Health Department officials, the state government has claimed that COVID-19 cases and positivity rate in the state have reduced significantly, and that the COVID-19 situation in the state is now completely under control. Therefore, it has been decided that the lockdown will be completely lifted, the Chief Minister’s Office said.